To talk about characters in a story is really to talk about character — or the values that our protagonists and antagonists hold most dear. A character’s character can be revealed in many ways: through physical appearance; body language; actions and reactions; and sometimes (but not always!) dialogue. Strongly defined values are what set characters apart, fleshing them out into fully realized, relatable (though not necessarily likable) ‘people’ who teach us something new about ourselves and the world we live in — even when that world is a parallel universe or a dystopian future.

In this class, participants will learn strategies for understanding the difference between negative, authentic, and aspirational core values that will help to write convincing characters every time, even and especially when those characters are the polar opposite of, or have completely different values from, the writer.